pinball
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A game, played on a device with a sloping base.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
pinbawlSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈpɪnbɔl
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
games
A game, played on a device with a sloping base (a pinball machine), in which the player operates a spring-loaded plunger to shoot a ball, between obstacles, and attempts to hit targets and score points.
games
A game played on a sloping board; the object is to propel marbles against pins or into pockets
The ball used in pinball.
figurativelysoccer
A situation where a ball is frantically kicked between many players.
verb
intransitive
To dart about rapidly.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C1 · Advanced
- Frequency
- Moderately Common
- Typical Use
- Neutral / general English
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: (games) A game, played on a device with a sloping base (a pinball machine), in which the player operates a spring-loaded plunger to shoot a ball, between obstacles, and attempts to hit targets and score points.
Used this way, pinball is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use pinball
- “We spent hours playing pinball at the arcade, trying to get the high score.”noun
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A game played on a sloping board.
Game equipment on which pinball is played.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.